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The Midwest
ILLINOIS
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NUDE BEACHES
About 50 miles north of Chicago, Illinois Beach State Park [4] 42.4095N, 87.8033W is near the Wisconsin state line. Although nudity is illegal and there is a possibility of being fined, a more remote part of the beach has had a small but persistent nudist contingent for many years.
LODGING
Blue Lake Resort
41.6335N, 90.0483W 
Erie (northwest IL, near IA border) |
INDIANA
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LODGING
Drake's Ridge
38.8272N, 85.1066W 
Bennington (southeast IN, near KY border)
Fern Hills Club
39.0695N, 86.6049W 
Bloomington (southwest of Indianapolis)
Sun Shower Country Club
39.7862N, 84.9816W 
Centerville (east of Indianapolis, near OH border)
Our Haven Nature Sanctuary
38.5622N, 86.7277W 
French Lick (southwest IN)
Sunny Haven
41.7448N, 86.0891W 
Granger (far northern IN, near MI border)
Sun Aura
41.1422N, 87.3251W 
Lake Village (northwest IN, near IL border)
Stag Run Club at Overlook Farm
38.0433N, 86.1720W 
Mauckport (far southern IN, near Louisville, KY)
CampBUCKwood
39.3234N, 86.2175W 
Morgantown (south of Indianapolis)
Ponderosa Sun Club
41.1536N, 87.3169W 
Roselawn (northwest IN, near IL border)
Lake O' The Woods
41.4555N, 87.0551W 
Valparaiso (northwest IN, near Lake Michigan)
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MICHIGAN
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NUDE BEACHES
Although Michigan has a wealth of sandy beaches along three Great Lakes, a statewide anti-nudity law has been an obstacle to establishing any of those as truly safe havens for nudity. The closest thing Michigan has to a public nude beach is Otter Creek Beach [3] 44.7837N, 86.0753W on Lake Michigan west of Traverse City. Part of Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, remote parts of this beach have seen relatively hassle-free nude use for at least several decades.
LODGING
Nuance Bed & Breakfast
42.4136N, 85.1992W 
Battle Creek (between Kalamazoo and Lansing)
Northaven Resort
42.1075N, 84.2048W 
Brooklyn (southwest of Ann Arbor)
CampIt Resort
42.5508N, 86.1942W 
Fennville (Saugatuck/Douglas area)
Spruce Hollow Campground
44.4789N, 85.7503W 
Mesick (south of Traverse City)
Cherry Lane
41.9737N, 84.4279W 
North Adams (southwest of Ann Arbor)
Camp Boomerang
43.0877N, 85.0721W 
Orleans (between Grand Rapids and Lansing)
Whispering Oaks Resort
42.8882N, 83.3392W 
Oxford (north of Detroit)
Forest Hills Club
42.9214N, 85.2571W 
Saranac (east of Grand Rapids)
CreekRidge Campground
42.4305N, 84.3212W 
Stockbridge (between Ann Arbor and Lansing)
Turtle Lake Resort
42.1048N, 85.1209W 
Union City (southeast of Kalamazoo)
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MINNESOTA
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NUDE BEACHES
Minnesota has had a few nudist hangouts in the Minneapolis area that have declined to oblivion over the past two decades. The only known established, albeit lightly attended, nude area in Minnesota at present is along the Lester River [3] 46.8536N, 92.0060W in Duluth.
LODGING
Avatan
45.3548N, 93.2597W 
East Bethel (north of Minneapolis)
Two Creeks Campground
46.1310N, 92.4914W 
Sandstone (between Minneapolis and Duluth)
Oakwood Club
45.3584N, 92.9975W 
Wyoming (northeast of Minneapolis)
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MISSOURI
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NUDE BEACHES & OTHER DAY-USE AREAS
Heartland Cove [4] 39.4608N, 94.5417W is a hidden area of Smithville Lake north of Kansas City. This beach was "colonized" by a Kansas City naturist group in the late '90s, but about a decade later that group abandoned the site due to the incursion of some irresponsible newcomers whose indiscreet behavior attracted the attention of police. Be aware of that the viability of this site as a nude beach has declined since the late '00s.
LODGING
Cactus Canyon Campground
36.8969N, 92.4874W 
Ava (southeast of Springfield)
Forty Acre Club
38.2558N, 90.8404W 
Lonedell (southwest of St. Louis)
Dawg Woodz Camp
37.3004N, 90.1487W 
Marquand (southeast MO)
Natural Pines Resort
40.5720N, 92.1866W 
Memphis (northeast MO, near IA border)
Show Me Acres
38.3134N, 92.9677W 
Stover (west of Jefferson City)
Sirenity Farms Campground
38.3053N, 91.1086W 
Sullivan (southwest of St. Louis)
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WISCONSIN
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NUDE BEACHES
Wisconsin has had two well-established nude beaches over the years, but sadly the past tense applies to both of them. In Milwaukee, a small stretch of beach known as Paradise Beach, along Lake Michigan near the campus of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, was a haven for nude bathers from the late 1980s until 1993, when it was shut down. A short article with reminiscences of Paradise Beach is posted at Milwaukeemag.com. Near Madison, Mazo Beach 43.2249N, 89.8164W had a far longer run as a venue for naturists. Bare bathing took hold at Mazo possibly as far back as the 1950s. The beach evolved into the premier nude beach of the Midwest and one of the finest in the country, but it all came to an end in 2016 when all access to the beach, by land or water, was blocked. Unfortunately, at present it seems highly unlikely that Mazo Beach will be re-opened and re-established as a nude beach anytime soon.
On the scenic Door Peninsula of Lake Michigan northeast of Green Bay, nudity occurs at Toft Point [3] 45.0663N, 87.0814W , but attendance is sporadic.
LODGING
Camp NCN North
44.3741N, 90.8195W 
Black River Falls (west-central WI, near Eau Claire)
Dragonfly Beach
44.1799N, 88.0710W 
Brillion (east of Appleton, south of Green Bay)
Valley View Recreation Club
42.9598N, 89.0070W 
Cambridge (between Milwaukee and Madison)
Toadally Natural Garden
43.3637N, 88.3675W 
Hartford (northwest of Milwaukee)
Cedar Hills Campground
43.2107N, 89.7477W 
Mazomanie (northwest of Madison)
Homestead Nych
44.4201N, 90.1251W 
Pittsville (central WI)
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